Tuatha de Danaan
by Gemini Angel
Summary: A mysterious girl transfers from Ireland. No one looks past her youth and beauty to see her age, wisdom, and true identity.
1. Prologue

A/N: Ok, here's the prologue of my newest story. Sorry, its short, but it's a prologue, isn't it? If anyone figures out who Brighid is, let me know in a review.  
  
  
  
The girl stood behind a large group of eleven-year olds, watching the people in the room before her. In all her years of life, she had never seen anything like this place. And she had seen a lot. More than even that singing hat, she mused.  
  
  
  
If anyone looked at her, they wouldn't realize her age, for she was small, at 5'1, with long hair, hair as dark as the night sky. The skin on her heart-shaped face was the pale white of the moon, and her round eyes were the marigold of the bright sun that rose over her home country every morning.  
  
  
  
As she trained her gaze on the ceiling of the large room, the ceiling that resembled her in appearance, she thought about how they wouldn't recognize her wisdom either. Well, some of them might, but most wouldn't.  
  
Then, the tall woman who had been calling out the names of the eleven- year olds announced, "And finally, our transfer student from Ireland, Brighid Danaan, who will be joining the fifth year."  
  
  
  
The room became quiet, and Brighid felt all eyes on her. She lifted her pale chin and began walking towards the old hat. Even if they realized she was wise, they would never realize the extent of her wisdom. Nor would they realize her age. To realize either of those, they would have to first discover who she was. And if she played her cards right, they wouldn't. 


	2. Chapter One

So sorry this took so long! I had MAJOR writer's block. Disclaimer: what do you think?  
  
  
  
Brighid sat down on a stool and the tall woman placed the old hat on her head.  
  
  
  
"You're not who you seem to be, are you?" The hat said. It seemed to be inside her mind.  
  
  
  
Brighid jumped. She scolded herself silently for not having foreseen this. Her cover was already being blown!  
  
  
  
"Don't be so hard on yourself," the hat told her, "we can't all foresee everything. And I'm the only one who knows. I won't tell."  
  
  
  
"Good," she told the hat silently.  
  
  
  
The hat then said, "Now lets see, where should we put you? What stands out most is your kindness. You're like a lamb, aren't you? That would be Hufflepuff. But you may be better suited to Ravenclaw, you have a good mind. You're clever, but you're also brave, like a Gryffindor."  
  
  
  
"I'm not brave," Brighid told it. "To be brave you must stand up to your fears. And there's nothing for someone like me to fear."  
  
  
  
The hat ignored this and went on, "You're here on a mission aren't you? While I now think that you're Hufflepuff qualities stand out above your others, you're here on a mission. And to help you with that mission, I'll put you in GRYFFINDOR!"  
  
  
  
When Brighid realized that the last word had been spoken out loud, she removed the hat and walked towards a table draped in red and gold. She sat in the first empty seat she could find and turned her attention to the front of the rooming, seemingly oblivious to the curious stares she was getting from the other students.  
  
  
  
An old man whom she had been told was called Professor Dumbledore began to speak, "This year, Professor Woodhouse will be replacing Professor Trelawney for a bit while she, er, takes a break and visits St. Mungos. All I can say now is, welcome to another good year at Hogwarts."  
  
  
  
Or maybe not so good, Brighid thought. But only time itself would tell.  
  
  
  
~*~*~*~*~The Next Morning~*~*~*~*~  
  
  
  
Brighid pushed the curtains aside and glanced at the clock on the opposite wall. It was six-thirty A.M. Classes wouldn't start for an hour- and-a-half. That meant she would have to spend time with the other girls in her dorm. The night before, she had gone to her dorm immediately. By the time the other three girls joined her, she had been asleep.  
  
  
  
"What school did you transfer from?"  
  
Brighid turned to look at the speaker. It was a girl with frizzy brown hair and brown eyes. What was her name? Hillary?  
  
  
  
Brighid decided that it would be safe to follow the story she had though up in the planning of this mission. "I was home-schooled back in Ireland."  
  
  
  
Hillary nodded, not commenting on the fact that Brighid's accent was odd.  
  
  
  
Across the room, another girl spoke up, "Really? I'm Parvati, Lavender is over there, and you're talking to Hermione."  
  
  
  
Oh so that was it. Hermione. Brighid decided that it would be better ask questions than answer them, in case she had to alter her story later. "What's the deal with these four houses?"  
  
  
  
She was treated to a VERY long explanation from Hermione.  
  
  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
Brighid followed Parvati and Lavender up the ladder and into the Divination classroom. She had been trying to avoid them at all costs, but they were in all of her classes, so doing so was impossible. However, the other girl in their dorm seemed to be much easier to avoid.  
  
  
  
Brighid immediately disliked the room. It was dark, stuffy and smelled as if over the years, many different perfumes had been sprayed there. She didn't mind the dark, but she preferred the natural smells of the woods. She took a seat near the teacher's desk-she was skilled at divination, she had no reason to hide in the back and hope not to be called on-and was immediately struck with a sense of déjà vu. Something was familiar. Something was right. Something was like it was at home.  
  
  
  
Just then, the teacher stood up, her long red hair flowing behind her, and told the class in an accent that sounded very much like Brighid's, only more lilting, and a bit sharper, "I am Professor Dana Woodhouse, I am replacing Professor....."  
  
  
  
Brighid blocked out the woman's voice and studied her. She was frighteningly familiar, Brighid was positive that the déjà vu was coming from her-who else could it be? The slightly over-weight boy? The red-head? The boy with the odd scar? The boy whom was indefinitely from her home country, or his friend? It certainly couldn't be coming from Parvati and Lavender!  
  
  
  
She was jolted out of her thoughts when the professor asked, "Brighid, its your turn to introduce yourself."  
  
  
  
Brighid bit her lip as she stood. Great. Now she would have to repeat her story. She spoke clearly, however, "My name is Brighid Danaan. I'm a transfer student from Ireland, where I was home-schooled. My favorite animal is a lamb, my favorite color is pink."  
  
  
  
Professor Woodhouse nodded as the small girl sat down. "Thank you Brighid. Now that we've all introduced ourselves, let's get to work. In a moment, I will hand a an assessment test so that I can tell what you already know."  
  
  
  
Brighid finished the test in a quarter of the given time. Realizing that she was the only one done, she quickly went back through the test and changed a third of her answers to make them wrong-a perfect score would attract attention. And attention was the last thing she needed.  
  
  
  
When she and the other students were leaving the room, Brighid stumbled and dropped her books. She leaned down to pick them up, and and when she stood, Professor Woodhouse was standing in front of her.  
  
  
  
Professor Woodhouse spoke softly, but clearly, "Brighid Imbolca, dear, you must tread carefully. And remember, even you have fears."  
  
  
  
Brighid closed her eyes in shock, hoping that when she opened them, she would find out that what her divination professor had said was so close to the truth-more than close to it, actually. How had Professor Woodhouse known her middle name? She hadn't told anyone, had she? She then opened her eyes, prepared to demand an explanation, but the woman was gone.  
  
  
  
Oh well. Brighid had never been very good at confrontation anyways. 


	3. Rhiannon amd Lugh

Okay, thank you for the reviews! 

Brighid waited until darkness was beginning to fall, then she discreetly slipped out of the Gryffindor Common room, carrying a small black bag, and made her way out to a place that the other students had called a "quitinch pitch." She had no clue what that was, and wasn't so sure she wanted to, but the bleachers that surrounded the large, grassy area would make a wonderful place for her to be alone and work on her mission. 

When she reached the pitch, she glanced around to make sure that no one was watching, closed her eyes, and levitated to top row of the bleachers. She sat down, enlarged the black bag, and opened it. 

As a gust of wind blew past, and she felt it calming her soul. Being who she was, it was both natural and expected of her to feel in tune with the wind, but she felt a stronger affinity with fire. It was almost unexplainable, but then, of course, there were others who felt a bond with different elements, too. 

Brighid laid a small tablet, the size of a square foot tile, on the ground and as the rainbow of colors that blended together to form and white, then separated, then blended together again flashed across it, she concentrated on the element of fire. Moments later, a small flame appeared in her hand, and she placed it on the tablet.

"Rhiannon, Lugh, my good friends, I call to you. Aid me in this time of need." Brighid leaned towards the fire as she said this.

She then began to sing in a voice that was so soft, it was nearly impossible to hear. If anyone did hear it, they would have to listen closely to decipher what she was actually singing, for the voice she sang in was as high and clear as that of a piccolo. The song was in the words of the language of her homeland, so it wasn't as if anyone here could speak that language.

As she finished singing, two beings appeared, one in a cyclone of wind, the other in a ring of fire. 

Rhiannon spoke first, the long curls that streamed from her head like a silky halo varying between brown, gold, and red, "Brighid, it hasn't been long at all, and we already miss you so." Rhiannon had been her best friend for as long as Brighid could remember. She had the bond with the wind that all of their kind were supposed to have, and felt the same connection with horses that Brighid felt with lambs.

Brighid smiled softly. "I know, my friend, but I must complete my mission first. I'm afraid I haven't called on you merely for a social exchange, but for help."

Lugh, who was tall with hair the color of the fire that was his trademark, stepped forward and asked, "I'm afraid that if you need help, this mustn't be a good situation." Lugh was much like Brighid, but at the same time, very different. Both were intelligent, shared a bond with fire, and were both multi-skilled and powerful. Yet he had killed many a time in the past without hesitation, yet Brighid killed only after much debate, and even then she declined from harming another being. 

Brighid cocked her head in thought as she replied, "You see, there is someone else here, someone who knows who I am. I'm not sure if she—or maybe she's a he—is on my side, but I doubt it. And I need more information, more allies placed here."

Lugh, after a moment of thought, replied, "If I remember correctly, someone _was_ placed here, long ago." 

Brighid was surprised. "Really? Why didn't I know about it?"

Lugh glanced down at her. "It wasn't really publicized. Few knew about it, you would have been among those of us who were, but you were away at the time."

Rhiannon brightened with realization. "I think I remember. I returned at the time of her departure, but I was too exhausted to think much of it. It was really awhile ago, wasn't it?"

Lugh nodded as Brighid cut in, "Wait a moment. Would you please tell me who it is?"

"Do you remember Rosmerta?" Lugh asked.

Brighid appeared thoughtful. "Yes, I never knew her very well. I don't remember seeing her in the past twenty or thirty years."

Rhiannon nodded. "True. We never did know her very well. Very few of us did, actually. That must have made it a good bit easier for her to disappear."

"She's located in an area called Hogsmeade, not too far from here. You should talk to her as soon as possible," Lugh advised.

Rhiannon told her friend, "I will use some dream work to get you to Hogsmeade soon."

Brighid nodded as her friends stood. "I will, Lugh. That would be great, Rhiannon. And thank you both."

As Lugh and Rhiannon disappeared the same way they had arrived, Brighid blew out the fire and began to gather her things.

AN: I know it kind of short, but I have homework tonight. 


End file.
